The Chicago Foreign Language Press Survey was published in 1942 by the Chicago Public Library Omnibus Project of the Works Progress Administration of Illinois. The purpose of the project was to translate and classify selected news articles that appeared in the foreign language press from 1855 to 1938. The project consists of 120,000 typewritten pages translated from newspapers of 22 different foreign language communities of Chicago.

Illinois Staats-Zeitung --
May 14, 1888

A Practical Application.

About two weeks ago the so called General Beem died. Since his death he has obtained more publicity than during his whole life. Out of his career of shame and disgrace many practical applications can be made; but whoever thought of making such a special one as did the local newspaper, Globe? This paper has taken over the bitter hatred of Germanism from the old Times and publishes the following: "This man Beem who assumed the title of "General" without having any claim to it whatever, this member of the best social clubs, this pretended learned man, and ambitious, politician, is now being exposed as a man not only without morals, but also without brains. One exception, however, must be admitted. Although he was insane, there was method in his insanity. He was a German. Of course, it can not be said that all Germans are crazy, but psychiatrists are of the opinion that there is a considerable tnedency towards lunacy in the German blood (hear ye). This opinion is confirmed by the large numbers of Socialists, Communists, Anarchists with which the German states are flooding the world."

The Globe should have gone a little farther and paraphrased the well known citation from Horace Greeley: "Not all Democrats are thieves, but all thieves are Democrats" into: "Not all Germans are crazy, but all crazy people are Germans".

It is not worth while to get indignant and angry about an explosion of hatred against Germans so vile that it is nothing short of insanity.

It is, indeed, true that Beem was a son of German parents, although he tried very hard to cover it up, and he understood not one word of German, or, at least, he did not want to understand it.

To make a practical application of this matter it should be said: A son of German parents, who intentionally denies his German descent and pretends to be of American origin, is in danger of exchanging all the good qualities of his German nature for all the worthless contemptible traits of the Americans.

Woe unto those German parents who favor their children's degermanization in their stupid illusion that the English language, which they themselves understand very 3deficiently, is the superior one. In too many cases children learn only the scum of the conversational language and of the English papers they prefer those publishing scandals and indecent stories.

Therefore it is a crime which German parents commit against their children and this country, if they deliberately try to up root those excellent inborn German traits in order to make of them worthless mock Americans who are ashamed of their German origin.

Children, raised by German parents, with genuine German discipline and honor, make the best American citizens, who highly esteem the German language as a dowry from their parental home. Those children of German descent, who despise their being of such parentage, usually turn out to be worthless, as was the case with Beem.